wasted, losing time
by sexyregal
Summary: SwanQueen student/teacher AU. Emma Swan is a seventeen year old with a dark past who will do whatever it takes to protect herself and her son.
1. Chapter 1

Emma sat on the minimally padded bus seat with her knees pulled in to her chest, staring out the window into the dimly lit September morning. She brought her converse-clad feet in closer to her body and pulled her jumper down over her knees as chills went through her body. August had barely passed, and already her thin leggings weren't nearly enough protection from the cold.

The crowded bus slowed to a stop and Emma quickly threw her old rucksack over her shoulder and pushed her way out of the vehicle. She sighed in defeat and walked up to the all-too-familiar brick building. The black sign above the doorway stared down maliciously, 'Elridge Community Secondary'. "Shit," Emma breathed. She pulled open the doors and walked to her locker, smiling at the people who waved at her along the way.

"Emms? Oh my god Emma baby, it's you!" A voice squealed from the other side of the hall. A genuine smile crept up on Emma's features and she turned around just in time for the small brunette to fling herself into Emma's arms.

"Lord, Ruby, you're going to break my back one of these days." Emma giggled, hugging her friend tightly before adding, "I missed you too, Rubes."

"You're damn right you missed me. I hate that you don't have a phone." She frowned slightly, "So have you found an apartment yet? And a safer job? Oh Emma you know my parents would take you in in a heartbeat don't you?"

"I'm fine, no apartment yet, but don't worry about me one bit. I worked at the diner on fifth during the summer, but the hours don't work for the school year so I've arranged to get my old job back." Emma looked at the ground, hoping to avoid the lecture that she knew was coming. Ruby sighed dramatically.

"Are you _sure _there's no other option?" She asked, her voice filled with worry.

"Yeah if there was another option I'd have taken it. I have no idea where to take Henry during my shifts though; I've gotten him in daycare from six to five so I can come to school but I don't know any daycare centre that would be open that late." Emma sighed, "This is a heavy conversation for the first day of twelfth grade." She faked a smile.

"I'll take Henry while you work on the condition that you take my cell phone with you. When you told me that creep followed you to the shelter last year I nearly had a heart attack, and I'm fairly certain my mother was close to fainting." Ruby rolled her eyes at the last part and hugged her friend lightly. "If there's anything we can do at all, i'm here for you Emms. Plus, you know I love little Henny like a brother." She grinned. A smile lit up Emma's delicate features and she slammed her locker shut with a loud crash.

"Thank you so much Rubes, I'm going to make it all work this year I swear I'm going to figure it all out."

"I know you will. Now show me your schedule, I have Mr. Jefferson for AP Chem and Calculus 2 and I don't plan on suffering through this year alone." Ruby shot a sly grin at the blonde.

"What are you going to do, bring me down with you? I'd take a bullet over Jefferson." Emma pulled the crumpled schedule out of her pocket and tossed it in her friend's direction.

"You and I both. _Fuck_ how did you manage to get Arnolds for Bio _and _Tilson for Physics? You bitch." She groaned in mock anger.

Emma pulled a faux innocent face and put on a dramatic valley girl accent, "uhh, blondes do it better!"

Ruby laughed dispite herself and slapped Emma playfully before putting on the same accent, "ummm, gag me with a spoon Emma Swan, Tilson is totally like, mine." She batted her eyelashes, causing the both of them to launch into a fit of giggles.

"No way, Rubes. Just watch this, I have the perfect way to seduce him!" Emma grabbed both of Ruby's hands and sighed, speaking in a seductive voice, "Hello Mr. Tilson, It's me, Emma Swan..." Emma started. Ruby choked on her laughter before feigning a serious expression. "...Your seventeen year old student. One time you gave me a C- and I told you to burn in hell. Anyways, how would you like to provide for me and my infant son and in return we can have some bomb sex." Emma winked in the least attractive way possible and Ruby lost it.

"Emma! Oh my fucking _god!"_ She squealed, "Did you actually tell Tilson to burn in hell?"

"Of course I did, I actually _studied _for that exam and he had the nerve to give me a C-?" Emma rambled on like it was the most obvious course of action possible and Ruby steadied herself on the lockers as she laughed.

"You really are a little firecracker aren't you?" She looked at Emma's schedule again and smiled deviously, "Looks like I'm not the only one in for a shitty year, Emms." She passed the piece of paper to Emma and pointed at one of the blocks.

"Wait what?" Emma asked, confused. "English 12, Mills, 204? I don't understand, who's Mills? I thought Canterbury taught English 12." She frowned, rereading the line. The morning bell rang, jolting Emma out of her thoughts.

"Not anymore sweet cheeks. Have fun with the she-devil, I'm off to class!" Ruby waved cheerfully, leaving Emma speechless by her locker. First block: English 12, Mills, 204. How hard could English be?


	2. Chapter 2

"Emma Swan. It's been quite a while since we've had a class together." Killian mused, startling Emma and causing her to drop her books. She bent down to retrieve them and glared up at Killian.

"I thought I switched out of all of your classes this term. It's a damn shame I missed one." Emma seethed, snatching her books into her chest and stalking away to her usual desk by the window at the front of the class. Killian grinned and called after her.

"You can't fight destiny, angel!" He yelled, loud enough that the entire class could hear him. The other students giggled and tried to avoid making eye contact with a very pissed off Emma Swan. After her 11 month stint in a juvenile detention facility when she was 15, most of her school treated her like a live volcano, making sure not to do anything that might set her off. Rumour had it, Emma had been locked up for killing a man with her bare hands. She didn't have the heart to tell them she was charged with theft.

Emma took out her notebook and stared up at the blank chalkboard, willing the clock to jump forward so that she could get home to Henry. The thought of her son brought a bright smile to her lips and she dropped her gaze to the desk, hoping that nobody had noticed. The sound of heels clicking on linoleum brought Emma back to reality and she lifted her head just in time to see the classroom door swing open, smashing into the wall forcefully with an audible crack.

"Somebody should fix that." The cause of the disruption spoke with an uninterested tone. She walked to the empty professor's desk and sat down, scanning the class lazily as she sipped an iced coffee.

"So you're a Starbucks kind of girl, I take it?" Killian broke the silence, his heavy accent evident when he spoke. Emma rolled her eyes and looked over to see the usual shit-eating grin plastered on his face. The woman looked unimpressed and dropped the beverage onto her desk.

"Killian!" David muttered, kicking his friend under his desk. It had been less than five minutes and already their new teacher looked like she wanted to punch someone. Emma couldn't really blame her. When she stood up from her leather office chair and parted her blood red lips to speak, Emma abruptly noticed that she was quite different from the other teachers at Elridge. Her chestnut hair fell to her slim shoulders and her collarbones traced delicate lines across her chest. Her eyes were a deep brown and her skin was bronzed and unblemished. Emma quickly realized that she was staring and dropped her gaze before the older woman would notice.

"As some of you are obviously unfamiliar with me, I suppose I should introduce myself. My name is Ms. Mills and I'll be teaching English 12 this year. I'm assuming most of you wish to pass my course this year, so you are to speak only when called upon, finish all of the work I assign, and most of all, don't bother me." Ms. Mills gave a spiteful grin and the class went quiet. "Any questions?" She retrieved the attendance sheet and began calling out names, receiving nervous replies from students. "Mary Margaret Blanchard? Ashley Boyd? David Charming?" Ms. Mills marked off names on the sheet as she went and Emma saw her classmates' horrified faces out of the corner of her eye. She smirked and looked at her teacher again. Emma had been through too much to let herself be intimidated by a high school English professor; she would pass this class and move on just like every other class she'd taken since primary school.

"Emma Swan?" The brunette called out, her dark eyes scanning the room.

"'Sup," Emma spoke, waving nonchalantly without giving the other woman so much as a glance. A puzzled expression crossed the woman's face and she quickly put down the sheet before clearing her throat.

"Today we'll be starting our unit on Shakespeare's _Hamlet_, I'm sure most of you have heard of it. You are to finish act one by tomorrow morning and be ready to discuss the content." She turned to return to her desk before facing the class again briefly and making a flippant gesture to the room before adding, "You are dismissed."

Emma walked to the door and once again was stopped by Killian. "She's bloody psychotic, yeah?" He looked back at Ms. Mills incredulously. Emma gave a sarcastic smile.

"Or maybe you just weren't prepared for _another _woman who isn't swooning at your feet." Emma replied.

"But you don't count Emms, you're, you know..." he lowered his voice to a whisper, "a lesbian."

"Oh please, Killian, I'm not a lesbian! I do have a son remember?" She groaned, "how do you think I got Henry, immaculate conception?"

Killian grinned, "Oh yes, I remember those days. When you were young and foolish and heterosexual."

Emma punched him in the arm, "Get to class, idiot." She giggled despite herself as she ran out of the classroom.


	3. Chapter 3

**Really grateful to everyone who's been reading and subscribing to this little story, I hope you all like it! Also, this is very very AU and Zelena's character is quite different, just a heads up. **

_And you taught me what this feels like._

_And then how it feels to lose it._

_And you showed me who I wanted._

_And then who I wasn't._

_And you ticked every box._

_And then drew a line._

_And you weren't mine to begin with._

_And then not to end with._

Emma slammed the book shut and shoved it into her bag. The cold night air chilled her to the bone and she told herself she was angry; filled with rage that after all of these years every single thing still reminded her of _him. _Neal had shown her a life without fear, without worries; a life with love – but he hadn't loved her. The thought stole the air from her lungs and she threw her head into her lap as sobs wracked through her small form.

She thought she must look like the epitome of a train wreck, crying at a bus stop in cheap stilettos with black mascara running from her dilated blue eyes to her ruby-painted lips. She sniffled, trying to stop the tears from flowing, but the action only elicited a small cough and a new wave of sobs. She heard a noise beside her and turned to face the disruption, meeting the dark eyes of a man about 30 years her senior.

"I saw you on the pole tonight, baby girl. How much for a night?" He sneered and pulled out a wad of bills from his pocket. Emma stood up quickly and felt the blood rush to her head. Anger flooded her body and she glared at him.

"More than you can afford, old man." She spat and walked away, the anger slowly melting back into a familiar sadness as she walked. She needed to get to Ruby's to pick up Henry and get a couple of hours sleep for school the following day. She supposed the walk would be roughly an hour, which wouldn't be bad if it weren't for the frigid weather and the tears that blurred the girl's vision. Emma pulled off her uncomfortable shoes and held them in her hand as she walked down the dimly lit road.

{Zelena's POV}

A ringtone played obnoxiously as the redhead sped down street after street, her gold-rimmed mustang going well over the legal speed for residential areas. She connected her iPhone to the car's speakers and picked up the call.

"Zelena?" A familiar voice questioned.

"Hi, Gina." A smile played out across the woman's lips at the mere sound of her little sister's voice.

Regina groaned in response, "You know I hate that nickname, Zelena."

"And you know I don't give a fuck, _Regina_." She spoke in the same cheerful tone, though clearly becoming annoyed.

"Must you be so vulgar?"

"Must you be so god damned annoying? Jesus Christ, Regina it's four in the morning, what do you want?" The humour was gone from her voice, and she could almost feel her sister's distasteful grimace.

"The interior of my house has just been re-painted and the painter insists that I cannot be in here tonight. Take me to your house." The words came out as more of a statement than a question, as they generally did with the brunette.

"Well aren't you demanding for someone with no place to sleep tonight?" Zelena grinned, relishing in the opportunity to irritate Regina.

Regina's voice softened for a moment, "I..." She tried to gather her thoughts, "Please?" Zelena sighed.

"Alright, but-" She trailed off, distracted by a figure on the sidewalk ahead of her. She slowed the car and her headlights illuminated large blue eyes and blonde curls.

"But what?" Regina asked impatiently.

"I'll be by later." She spoke abruptly and ended the call. Zelena wasn't sure what was so alarming about the woman in front of her that she'd stopped her car in the middle of the road, but she squinted, trying to get a better view. The blonde was staring up at her with those doe eyes, her red lips parted in confusion. She had obviously been crying and her delicate face was smudged with black eye makeup. She wore a tight red dress with a much-too-large jacket over her shoulders and carried a pair of red stiletto heels in her right hand. The odd thing was how young she looked – far too young, in Zelena's opinion, to be in this part of town so late at night. She rolled down her window and pulled over to the side of the road.

The blonde stumbled backwards before regaining her composure and addressing the woman in the car. "If you're want money, I don't have anything." She spoke with feigned bravery that barely came out as more than a whisper as tears still fell from her eyes.

"Relax, I don't want your money it's really fucking cold outside and I thought you might like a ride." Zelena sighed. The other woman looked at her apprehensively.

"Well, that depends on weather or not you plan to hurt me." Her voice was full of uncertainty as she tried to assess her options. Zelena raised her hands in a weak attempt to show her new acquaintance she meant no harm and for a moment she saw a trace of a shy smile on the other woman's lips.

"Girl scout's honour." Zelena smiled and watched as the thin woman walked around to the other side of the car and sat down next to her.

"I'm Emma." She said quietly, glancing up at Zelena.

"You're very trusting, Emma. I'm Zelena." She smirked and Emma gave a genuine laugh, surprising the redhead.

"I have this thing, sort of like a superpower. I know when people are lying." She smiled.

"Damn, I wish I had one of those, would've saved myself a few bad relationships." Zelena smirked. "Anyways, where do you need to be, Emma?"

"Do you know Hilston drive?" Emma asked hopefully.

"Yeah, would you mind if we stopped to pick up my little sister on the way?" The address that the blonde had referred to was only five minutes from Regina's house and she thanked god that she'd be heading in that direction anyways.

"Yeah it's cool with me." Emma replied, thinking for a second before she made a confession, "I always wanted a sister, is that weird?"

Zelena laughed, "Not weird, but I'm sure you'll change your mind once you meet mine." She rolled her eyes dramatically. "Do you have any siblings?" She asked.

"No," Emma sighed. "Well I mean who knows, I've never met my parents or anything, but most likely not."

"My mother gave me up when I was a baby," Zelena blurted out, instantly regretting her words. She didn't even know Emma and she was already confessing her darkest secrets to her. Emma sighed.

"It's shitty, right? We're stuck our whole damn lives wondering why the fuck we weren't good enough for them. I'll never let my son think he's anything but the best thing that ever happened to me."

"You have a son?"

A smile crept up on Emma's face and she blushed. "Yeah, his name's Henry. I'm working this awful fucking job at Emerald Nightclub to pay for daycare so I can keep going to school, but I'd do anything for him."

"Well then Henry is lucky to have you." She beamed at the younger blonde. "You're in college?"

"Twelfth grade," Emma corrected her. "I'm only seventeen," She admitted.

"Damn, I feel old." Zelena laughed and pretended to cover her face.

"Watch the road, lady!" Emma squealed, putting her hand to her heart in faux panic. She smirked as Zelena stuck her tongue out. "Are you in college?"

"No, thank God. I was a total nerd in high school so I graduated early and took an accelerated medical program. I got my degree in paediatrics when I was 24 and I've been working for three years now."

"I'm impressed," Emma raised her eyebrows.

"Don't be, I'm fairly certain I only did my work because one of my professors was hot."

Emma opened her mouth to speak but was suddenly distracted by an image in her mind of her English teacher with her dark hair and soft curves. "I-I'm in a similar position at the moment." She stammered, covering her mouth when she realized what she'd said.

Zelena nearly choked on her laughter as she saw the blonde's expression of pure terror. "No shame, sister. How hot on a scale of 1-10?" She asked seriously, eliciting laughter from Emma. Emma had only seen Miss Mills once and hadn't really thought about how attractive the older woman was until then.

"I'd be lying if I said less than 10. She's like," Emma paused as she tried to find the words to describe the brunette, "Shockingly hot."

"Shockingly hot?" The older woman raised her eyebrows.

"Shockingly hot." Emma repeated, a smug grin on her face. A familiar song started to play on the radio and Emma reached over to turn up the volume, surprising Zelena. Emma smiled brightly and sang along, much to the amusement of the other woman. Emma saw the look on her face and pouted, "Oh, come on, Zelena, how can you not love this song?" Emma looked like a lost puppy dog and Zelena couldn't help but laugh and sing with the younger woman.

_Sugar, oh, honey, honey_

_You are my candy girl_

_And you got me wanting you_

When the song ended, Emma settled back into her seat with a lazy smile on her face. "Zelena?" There was uncertainty in her voice when she spoke.

"Yes, Emma?"

"Thank you for this," She sighed, "For the ride, I mean. And also, I haven't had many friends in my life so times like this make me really happy."

The redhead felt tears well in her eyes at the underlying sadness in Emma's voice. She spoke suddenly, catching both herself and Emma off guard. "I-I need a new receptionist in my office, and I don't get along with most people, so do you think you'd like it?"

Emma looked shocked. "You want to be around _me_ every day?" She asked.

Zelena shrugged, "Why is that so shocking? You can bring Henry, I mean I'm a paediatrician I don't really mind having kids around." She laughed.

"I don't do affectionate gestures but I feel like hugging you right now." Emma grinned.

"Oh well, it's the thought that counts." Zelena pulled out a business card and handed it to Emma. "Call me when you decide." Emma took it and put it in one of the pockets in her large jacket as they pulled up to a rather large mansion.

"Holy fuck." Emma breathed, staring at the house.

"Don't be intimidated, Regina's a high school teacher. Our mother is wealthy and I'm sure you can see which sibling she favours."

"Shitty deal." Emma half-whispered.

"Tell me about it."

A small figure exited from the house and approached the car, she seemed to be about 5"1 but wore tall loubutin pumps that made her appear much taller. As soon as Emma saw the woman's face, she paled.

"Emma, what's wrong?" Zelena asked, concern in her voice.

"I- What's your last name, Zelena?" Emma stammered, increasingly aware of the shortening distance between the car and Regina.

"Mills, why?" Zelena wore a confused expression and Emma's breath caught in her throat. "Emma, tell me what's going on." She demanded.

"That's my-" Emma started, unsure what to say, "She's my teacher." She stared at the ground, not wanting to see her new friend's reaction.

"Oh my lord," Zelena mused, a smile forming on her lips. Suddenly she began to laugh, surprising the young blonde. "Regina is your hot teacher?" She squealed, "My _sister?"_

Emma looked up at her, embarrassment on her face, making the redhead laugh even louder. "Don't laugh at me i'm already dying inside." Emma spoke dryly, staring out the window.

"Oh Emma, honey, didn't anyone ever tell you to stay away from the crazy ones?" The older woman kept laughing, making the blonde groan.

"I'm not going to bang Miss Mills, Zelena, she's my English professor." Emma closed her eyes, looking as if she wished she could magically disappear from the awkward situation that was progressively becoming worse.

"Miss Mills? I'm surprised she doesn't have you call her 'Your Highness'." Zelena rolled her eyes. The two women were interrupted by an annoyed knock on Emma's window, and Emma's eyebrows shot up, her eyes widening in panic. "Relax, weirdo, she won't bite."

"Zelena, open the door this instant!" Regina yelled from outside of the car.

"Maybe if you asked nicely," Zelena rolled down her window and offered a fake smile, eliciting a scowl from her sibling. "Get in the back, princess."


	4. Chapter 4

**This is going to be a fairly short chapter as I've got quite a few exams this week, but I hope you like it! Thank you endlessly to everyone who's been reviewing/following this story, you're angels. **

Zelena shot the younger woman a warm smile, before leaning in to whisper quickly in her ear. "She won't know who you are, you look like a train wreck I promise." She breathed. Emma stuck her tongue out, not even trying to fight the other woman on her comment about Emma's appearance. Emma tried to imagine what she must look like with her tear streaked makeup and smudged lipstick and shuddered.

Regina slammed the door behind her on her way into the car, eliciting a groan from her blue-eyed sibling. "Regina." Zelena greeted rather rigidly, glancing back at the brunette.

"Zelena." Regina responded in the same tone, noticing Emma's presence a few moments later. "I didn't know you had... friends?" Her voice was a mixture of confusion and something Emma couldn't distinguish.

"Yes, dear, this is Em-Elsa. Elsa." A sly smile settled on her delicate features, making Emma grin in return, hazel eyes meeting ice blue.

"Elsa? She was named after a character from Frozen?" Regina inquired, her eyebrow raised slightly.

"If I'm not mistaken, our relative ages would suggest it would be the other way around." Emma smirked. "I'm sorry, I didn't catch your name."

"That would be because I didn't drop it, darling." Her tone was uninterested as she pulled a gold iPhone out of her black Chanel tote, scrolling lazily with manicured fingers. "If you must know, I'm Regina."

"Queen," Emma remarked, finally realizing where she'd heard the name before.

"Excuse me?" Regina gazed over to the blonde, confused.

"Your name, it means Queen." Emma spoke flatly. Upon seeing the lack of recognition in the brunette's chocolate eyes, she sighed, continuing. "Salve, Regina, mater misericordiae; vita, dulcedo et spes nostra, salve. Ad te clamamus exsules filii Hevae."

Zelena spoke the next few lines of the prayer, her eyes staring at the road ahead with a sadness in her eyes that didn't go unnoticed by Emma. "Ad te suspiramus gementes et flentes in hac lacrimarum valle. Eia ergo, advocata nostra, illos tuos misericordes oculos ad nos converte."

"Religious foster home?" Emma sighed, sympathy in her eyes.

"Unfortunately yes. Yourself?" Zelena forced a weak smile.

"One. I was with them for two years." The small woman's voice was barely over a whisper. "Surely you've heard the Salve, Regina before?" Emma spoke louder now, glancing back at Regina. "Regina is latin for Queen."

"I suppose it is." There was a wistfulness to Regina's speech that caught both women off guard. The car slowed to a stop and Zelena turned off the ignition, turning to face Emma.

"This is the right place, yes?" She asked.

"Yes it is," Emma smiled, "I'll call you tomorrow if that's alright with you."

"That would be wonderful." She pulled the blonde into a hug and turned the car back on, unlocking the doors. Emma stumbled out, pulling her bag with her and watched as the tail lights disappeared into the distance. It had been barely thirty minutes and already the Mills girls were like a drug to her; a breath of fresh air amidst the dirt and smoke of her life. Zelena was respectable, but her eyes betrayed a vulnerability that Emma knew all too well came from years of suffering. Regina, on the other hand, was completely unreadable, and something about her intrigued the young woman more than she'd care to admit.


End file.
